Africa Unplugged

The development of wireless technologies has placed Africa as one of the fastest growing regions for information and communication technologies. The world of wires and fixed lines are being cut loose and in its place comes technology that enables entire communities access to technology and the internet. For years the African continent has lagged behind technologically developed countries where resources and availability have allowed advanced wired communities. Now this opportunity to open the internet, information and access to the rest of the world has emerged in the form of Internet enabled cellphones, PDA’s (personal digital assistants); Wireless local area networks; broadband wireless, and most recently the phenomenon of Blootooth. All of these emerging product are included in the booming world of wireless technology…but what is it exactly?

The installation of cables and wires has been a worldwide mission for the past couple of decades but for some countries It has been both an expensive and impractical process and has thus limited their progress as communication centres. However, now technologies have emerged that do not require cables but instead requires the transmission mechanism http://wireless.utk.edu/overview.html#voice of sending products, such as Bluetooth are the cable replacecment technologies that are cutting the wires of fixed communication centres.

Wireless Local Area Networks (WLAN) are able to connect a mobile user to a wired network within an office or building, allowing users freedom of movement and increased access. It can also act as an alternative to the intracies involve din installing cables between two different geographical locations, particularly in sparsely populated areas.Broadband wireless (BW) increases the amount of information that can be transferred though a wireless connection. It allows for the simultaneous delivery of voice, data and video frequencies. Bluetooth works in a similar manner, yet it incorporated only low cost, short range wireless links between devices such as cellphones and mobile PCs and the internet. Although there are still limiting factors to this product, like limited coverage due to intereference and physical obstacles, it is well on its way to being inescapable as far as global communication is concerned.

Africa became a leading player in the wireless game when it became the first continent where mobile phones replaced fixed lines. The high costs of landline phones dominated by profit seeking monopolies limited the amount of communication that took place amongst a large number of Africa’s population. The introduction of the cellphone and its emerging competitors lowered costs and has opened up the world of cellular communication to those who could not previously afford it. This introduction to wireless communication did not stop with cellphones, now the opportunities and advantages provided by the Internet and web based technology are being brought to communities across Africa. The reasons for the boom in wireless Africa is said to be as a result of the high percentage of youth in the African populations, the linguistic and cultural diversity as well the sparsely populated areas in so many African regions. In many cases the reason for lack of technology in a particular area has been because of the expenses and impracticality of installing wires across vast African regions.

Wireless seems to be the best option for advancing in web based communication in this regard and is currently being used for many new applications like computer connections and remote monitoring and data acquisition. Even with the popularity and benefits of the wireless phenomenon in Africa, there are still mnay densely populated urban centres that are heavily reliant on existing wired infrastructures, clear proof that although wireless may be a solution for new developing communication markets, wired networks are far from being redundant.

The possibilities are endless now that wireless has increased communication on a global scale. Invisible frequencies are racing through the air worldwide, connecting people, places, countries and continents. With the market continuously churning out better and more cost effective products, there is no telling where this unattached wireless revolution will take us, but it is predicted that by 2009 there will be over 300,000